Accra, July 4, GNA-President John Evans Atta Mills has assured Ghana's ambassadors and heads of missions of regular remittances for the effective discharge of their duties.

President Mills gave the assurance in a keynote address at a conference attended by the envoys at the Accra International Conference Centre on Monday.

"On the question of remittances, we are aware of this problem. This Year, you'll be able to see the difference," President Mills told the 50 Ambassadors who returned home from their various duty stations for a review of their performances and to deliberate on how to enhance diplomacy for the attainment of Government's Better Ghana Agenda.

The three=96day conference would review the performance of the national economy with focus on bilateral and multilateral co-operation, advancing Ghana's shared growth and development agenda within the international community, the role of the diplomatic missions in branding Ghana and the status of the implementation of the Better Ghana Agenda as it related to her international relations.

President Mills commended the envoys for their hard work despite the financial challenges, and said Government would always throw its support behind them for the successful discharge of their duties, in order that the country would not be left behind in the global pace of development.

The President made reference to the recent events in the North African Region, saying that they should be an eye opener to the rest of the Continent.

President Mills reiterated the determination of Government to ensure free and fair elections in 2012 and said, 94We will not relent in our efforts to ensure free, transparent and credible elections."

He noted that Ghana could not afford to lose her enviable reputation as a democratic state worthy of emulation on the Continent, and urged the envoys to make value judgements on information that went round about his Administration.

"We should not believe everything that we hear or read. In spite of the challenges, we've been able to make a headway.

"We have embarked on a road, all signs are positive. At the end of the four years, Ghanaians would see they have not been denied of what we promised them."

President Mills reiterated Government's commitment to run a people-centred foreign policy and a Government that was focused on investing in people, creating opportunities for all, and running an open, honest and transparent administration.

He called on the envoys to expand their investment drive, and to invite the investment community to take advantage of the good investment climate in Ghana and come down with genuine investments that would be mutually beneficial.

President Mills said Government would continue to team with sister African countries to forge continental peace and unity, stressing that Government would continue to help bring lasting peace to neighbouring La Cote d'Ivoire and to assist in the reconstruction of that country.

He urged the envoys to be frank in their deliberations. Foreign Affairs Minister Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni, reminded the envoys of the changing trends in diplomacy, and urged them to adapt, and employ the contemporary methods for more effective networking with stakeholders in shaping the destiny of the world.

"Competition across national frontiers for resources and influence remain a driving imperative today as it did in the last century. Our success in implementing our priorities as a country in the years ahead will therefore depend to a large extent on how best we recognise and respond to the new challenges and the ability to harness the opportunities that they provide to advance the national interest."

He charged the conference, which was also attended by the Diplomatic Community in Ghana, some Ministers of State and politicians from across the divide, to come out with a document that would be instructive in sharpening the focus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration with regard to strengthening its management at its Accra headquarters as well as the missions abroad.

On behalf of her colleagues Mrs Helen Nee-Whang, Ghana's Ambassador to Switzerland, assured President Mills that they would assert themselves more for the success of the Better Ghana agenda.

She dwelt on global happenings and said Africa was at a critical point in becoming the leader in global development in the 21st century.

Professor Kofi Nyidevu Awoonor, Chairman of the Council of State chaired the opening ceremony.